Transfers and Gossip up to January 3rd

As the leagues continue around Europe and the rest of the world, many are looking to buy, loan or sell players. We catchup with the transfers and gossip up to January 3rd with the help of top tier source Fabrizio Romano and other reliable sources.

Overviewing the transfers and gossip up to January 3rd can be a huge help for fantasy managers around the world. Whether it affects Fantasy Premier League, UCL Fantasy or another Fantasy game, we look at what the deal could mean for the player or team from a fantasy point of view.

Tottenham search for a new centre-back

As we can see Tottenham seem to be in a desperate search for a new centre-back. Although playing well and sitting fifth in the league domestically, Tottenham have been playing with four full-backs due to injuries which has meant instability at the back.

As well as Tobido, Tottenham have opened up talks with Radu Dragusin. The Romanian centre-back has been crucial for Genoa this season – playing 18 matches, scoring two goals and creating one assist.

The loss of Dragusin will no doubt make Genoa less defensively investable for Serie A Fantasy but it could drive up even more interest in the Tottenham assets for FPL.

Jadon Sancho and a Manchester United exit

After joining Manchester United in July 2021 for a huge £73.4m Jadon Sancho now seems to be on the verge of returning to Dortmund. In his first 29 league matches for the Reds Sancho managed just three goals and three assists. He then went onto secure six goals and three assists in 26 matches. Ultimately Sancho failed to meet the clubs expectations.

Sancho has a chance at redemption for his former club. It’s worth remembering that the Englishman bagged a huge eight goals and 11 assists in his last season at Dortmund and Bundesliga Fantasy managers will be hoping he can regain that old form.

Buchanan books in at Inter

Fabrizio Romano seems to have confirmed one of the first signings of the window. As we can see Tajon Buchanan is set to join Inter from Club Brugge for a fee of €7m.

Inter, although dominant in Serie A, have been experiencing a period of mass injuries at the back. Due to this Inter have had to tap into the transfer market and ended with Buchanan. The Canadian can play as a right-back, wing-back and right winger so is likely to fit into the Inter set-up perfectly.

In terms of output Buchanan managed two goals and two assists in just 12 Belgian league matches this season. This is a very interesting signing for Serie A Fantasy players but also a very frustrating one as Inzaghi rotation looks set to continue.

Madrid reject rumours of signing a centre-back

We can also see that Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti rejected claims in regards to signing a new centre-back. Many fans expected the Spanish side to commit to a new centre-back with defensive injuries to the likes of Dani Carvajal and David Alaba. The latter has been ruled out of the season due to a serious knee injury.

The above could mean that the Real Madrid backline is more predictable moving forward for UCL Fantasy managers. However, it could also suggest that Real Madrid may struggle to keep clean sheets without strengthening their weakened backline.

Napoli search for a centre-back

As we can see, Napoli have entered the market for a new centre-back. The Italian Champions have really struggled this season since losing Kim Min-Jae to Bayern in the summer. They have also been severely depleted at the back throughout their campaign due to injuries.

Martin Vitik could well be the answer to Napoli’ issues. Vitik is just 20 years old but has already shown versatility in both a centre-back and right back role. Although young Vitik started 13 of Sparta Praha’ league matches as well as starting five of their Europa league matches.

Vitik’ signature could be a great one for Napoli. The Italian side have been nowhere near their usual standards this season and the fact they have only kept five clean sheets in 18 matches reflects that. His signing could mean that the Napoli defensive assets become more appealing for Serie A Fantasy managers.